Charlie’s Angels alum Cheryl Ladd has enjoyed a successful film and television career spanning five decades. Impressively, the Charlie’s Angels television series, as well as some of her biggest films, such as 1989’s Millennium and 1992’s Poison Ivy, were filmed while she was raising her daughter, Jordan Ladd, and stepdaughter, Lindsay Russell. Read on to learn about Cheryl Ladd’s kids Jordan and Lindsay, and whether or not they followed in her footsteps.
Jordan Ladd
Not only did Jordan Ladd get her mother’s beauty, blonde hair and all, but she was also graced with her incredible acting chops! Jordan, born on Jan. 14, 1975 to Cheryl and her husband at the time David Ladd, received her first professional acting credit at just three years old when she played a 3-year-old version of her mother’s character in Charlie’s Angels, per IMDb. She picked up acting again when she was 15 years old, and has had a steady flow of work since. Some of her most notable projects include her role of Gibby in 1999’s Never Been Kissed, 2002’s Cabin Fever, and 2007’s Death Proof.
In a 2010 interview, Jordan said growing up in the film industry made her want to pursue acting herself. “It is a funny thing when you grow up in a showbiz family, you end up kind of signing for your supper. It is reinforced creativity,” she told Mediamikes.com. “If you get into trouble, you find a way out by writing a song or writing a play. I have always loved movies and filmmaking as well. I never had the aspiration to be a song and dance gal on Broadway or anything. I just genuinely love movies. It is what I know and what I love.”
Her mother also explained that acting certainly ran in her blood in a 2022 interview with Closer Weekly, during which she also confessed that Jordan was better prepared for the acting industry than she was when she began auditioning. “She had a clearer awareness and understanding of the business than I did when I left South Dakota and got to California,” she revealed. “She’s also a wonderful actress. I wasn’t surprised by that. It was kind of in the DNA.”
Over the years, Jordan has worked on several horror films, but she revealed she at first wasn’t a huge fan of the genre in a 2016 chat with Wicked Horror. She admitted that working on Cabin Fever turned her onto the genre ad revealed why she stays intrigued by horror films. “What I think is interesting about horror is that you can explore other themes within the context of it. And you can insert other genres in it. For the most part, out everything I’ve worked on, only a couple of things have been straight-up horror, and I find that less interesting,” she explained. “I much prefer when it subverts other genres into it, for instance a romantic comedy. Death Proof, for example, that was an empowering chick flick. Cabin Fever was really about people turning on each other and Club Dread was a ridiculous over-the-top comedy. That’s when I think horror is most interesting, when it will appeal to fans of the genre, but reach people outside of that.”
Jordan and Cheryl got to return to the screen together in 2018 for The Christmas Contract, and Cheryl told People (via Daily Mail) that year that filming together was “a ball.” And despite the Unforgettable actress saying working with her daughter was a “Christmas gift”, she said she would have supported her regardless of what career path she chose. “If she had wanted to be a clothing designer or a scientist, I would’ve probably jumped up and down and said, ‘Woohoo — that’s great!'” she noted.
There is not too much known about Jordan’s personal life, but she was married to fellow film industry professional Conor O’Neill between 2001 and 2005. They did not have any kids.
Lindsay Russell
Cheryl married music producer Brian Russell in 1981, and therefore became the stepmother of his one daughter, Lindsay Russell, who was around the same age as Jordan. Lindsay has lived her life out of the spotlight, but said in a 1999 documentary that Cheryl and her father made sure that she and her stepsister knew they were both loved equally when they blended their family together, a transition Jordan described as difficult.
In the 2022 interview with Closer, Cheryl gushed about bother her daughters and the wonderful relationships they share. “She’ll always be my baby, but she’s also one of my very best friends,” she proudly stated about Jordan. She added, “My other daughter is Lindsay. I’ve been her stepmom, or ‘bonus mom,’ as she calls me since she was 4.”